You schedule in time to exercise (or at least think about doing it). Lock dinner catch ups into the calendar. Maybe even block out time to tackle emails in a quest to avoid distraction during the day. But have you ever considered going away with a bunch of strangers to read? Reading retreats are the latest wellness travel trend to try in 2025, and these are the ones you need to know about.
Photo by Nguyen Thu Hoai on Unsplash
It almost feels like the perfect plot line: When long, uninterrupted stretches of time to lose yourself in a good book feel so out of reach, in swoops a new wellness travel trend to save the day.
Reading retreats are popping up in dreamy locations like Provence, Seville, Morocco and the Cotswolds, and tap into a yearning so many of us feel. A quest to slow down, connect with likeminded souls, and savour analogue joys. Preferably somewhere gorgeous with great food and wine.
When Australia-based bibliotherapist, Lucy Pearson, announced three specialised reading retreats via her website The Lit Edit this month, she was blown away by the response.
“I think people are wanting to go on these reading retreats to really move away from our dangerous obsession with technology,” she says. “We are all so obsessed with our telephones, and I think we’re all recognising that it has become almost like a bit of an epidemic.
“But there are also lots of people that might be intimidated by your more, physical wellness retreat. I feel like a reading retreat is a really nice act of self-care without there being any demand of your physical fitness.”
Photo by Nadia Sitova on Unsplash
So what does a reading retreat entail? Is it like an extended book club where you all sit around and read the same book?
Some reading retreats, like those by Ladies Who Lit keep the itineraries quite fluid with an onus on socialising, dedicated reading time and discussion. Their retreats sell out within hours of launch. Lucy has gone one step further to incorporate specialised bibliotherapy sessions for each guest, along with themed reading lists and books provided prior to the retreat.
“I’ve also picked a book for each retreat that’s short enough to read in a couple of hours. So on each one, we’ll be doing a silent book club where we’ll encourage everyone to hand in their phones, go and find a spot – whether that’s on the beach when we’re in Wales, or by the pool in Provence…
“I really want to encourage this idea of deep reading, which is what so many of us struggle with because we’re constantly looking at Instagram. I am constantly looking at my phone! And it’s only by training ourselves out of it that we can actually become better and deeper readers.”
Here are five of the best reading retreats happening in 2025 that you’ll want to bookmark (sorry, couldn’t help it):
Wairarapa Reading Retreat
Martinborough, Wairarapa, New Zealand | 28-30 March 2025
Italian book lover and marketing consultant, Hannah Rauch, launched Busy With Books in August 2024 in her new homeland of New Zealand, designing reading retreats for those who are usually too busy caring for others to carve out time to read.
Set in a dreamy landscape overlooking the Remutaka range, this two-night retreat offers a simple premise: uninterrupted reading time paired with Hannah’s homestyle Italian meals. A book fair and ‘blind date with a book’ are just two of the fun extras you might experience, but only if you want to.
Rest & Read in Wales
Tresaith, West Wales | 6-8 June 2025
Escape to a beachfront Victorian house on the Welsh coast, and explore literature inspired by the sea. This three-day reading retreat is designed to broaden your reading horizons and find inspiration in the coastal landscape – whether its by hiking alongside it or eating its spoils during hosted meals.
Hosted by Ease and Lucy Pearson, the retreat includes a one-on-one bibliotherapy session to discuss your reading habits and provide you with a bespoke book prescription.
The Poet’s Lodge, Daylesford
Australian Reading Retreat
Daylesford, Victoria | 26-29 August 2025
Curl up by the fire during this restful three-day retreat with new bookish friends, at Poet’s Lodge in the foothills of the Great Dividing Range. You’ll receive a book to read before your arrival and enjoy a Silent Book Club during your stay, as well as a goody bag filled with ‘prescribed’ books to take home.
Expect cosy fireside dinners, soul-filled conversations, an open mic night to share some of your favourite passages, and a one-on-one bibliotherapy session with your host Lucy Pearson to explore your perfect reading blueprint.
Read Yourself Happy With Daisy Buchanan
Zakynthos, Greece | 28 September – 4 October, 2025
Hosted by the author of new book, Read Yourself Happy, Daisy Buchanan, this week-long retreat in the Greek Islands goes beyond reading and infuses creative workshops, poetry readings, intention setting and a lust-worthy itinerary to explore (hello sailing, wild swimming and a traditional Greek cooking class).
Chateau St Victor la Coste, France
Provence Reading Retreat
Saint-Victor-la-Coste, France | 2-5 October, 2025
Dive headfirst into all the romance and intrigue of French literature while staying in the divine Chateau St Victor la Coste in Provence and enjoying long rosé lunches.
This retreat, hosted by Lucy Pearson, allows time for deep reading paired with a one-on-one bibliotherapy session, Silent Book Club and plenty of poolside chat.
